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In the early 2000s, Genevieve Jeanson was a rising star in women’s cycling. National titles, World Cup wins, and dominating victories at American classics – the young French Canadian was taking the American and international scene by storm. But her career came to an immediate stop in 2005, when she tested positive for erythropoietin (EPO) and retired soon thereafter.

While history quickly wrote her off as a doper, over time we learned that there was a lot more going on than meets the eye. Jeanson revealed that her relationship with coach Andre Aubut was physically and emotionally abusive. EPO had been forced on her since she was just 16 years old, and for over a decade he control her whole life. As her 10-year ban from competition comes to an end, Jeanson talked to Ella Editor Anne-Marije Rook about making peace with past.

Cycling is a game of inputs and outputs: how much power you’re able to produce in your legs vs. how much of that power is actually put to use in propelling you forward. Of the four main obstacles you have to overcome while riding — aerodynamic drag, gravity, rolling resistance, and mechanical friction — mechanical friction is the least significant, but it’s far from zero. US technical editor James Huang takes an in-depth at how much friction there is and what we can do about it, but also easy and inexpensive things to do at home to ensure we’re making the most of our efforts.

The winter months often include bonding sessions for many pro squads, most famously the military-style camps used by Team CSC/Saxo Bank in the past. However the all-diabetic Team Novo Nordisk went an entirely different route altogether, combining group energy and altruism to help others while at the same time coming closer together.

CyclingTips’ Shane Stokes travelled to the Dominican Republic to document this, and also spoke to one of the riders about living with diabetes.

CyclingTips talks with music video directing legend Nigel Dick, who -- in addition to having directed more than 500 music videos (including by Oasis, Guns N' Roses, and many more), is a cyclist and cycling film director, capturing everything from the Tour de France to a day in the life of David Millar.